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Son of the Mask, Watchmen, Blade III, Transformers, More: C2F wrap for July 15, 2003

Dark Horse Entertainment honcho Mike Richardson told C2F/CBR News that a new
wave of Dark Horse movies are on the way, starting with “Hellboy” and
the soon-to-film “Son of the Mask.”

“Son of the Mask” is the sequel to the surprise hit adaptation
“The Mask” which featured a pre-superstardom Jim Carrey, a
then-unknown Cameron Diaz and tons of inventive CGI effects.

Jamie Kennedy (“The Jamie Kennedy Experiment”) has signed on to
star in the sequel with Alan Cumming (“X2: X-Men United”) slated to
play the villainous Loki, originator of the mask.

It’s unclear if Kennedy, who plays a struggling cartoonist and single father,
will actually don the mask. Some reports indicate that his infant son may be the
wearer in this one.

Richardson isn’t telling. “The Mask [character] will appear in the movie,”
is all the Dark Horse chief would dish, “but there’re some new surprising
twists.”

Richardson did tell us that Kennedy is in active talks with Dark Horse about another movie
project, but again, the details are being kept under wraps.

Also in the works for Dark Horse is a big screen version of the long-running
comic strip “Blondie and Dagwood.” Dark Horse is working with Dean
Young, son of “Blondie” creator Chip Young and current author of the
strip, to develop the concept into a feature.

Fans of the defunct “Comics Greatest World” line from the mid-1990s
may be able to look forward to a “Ghost” movie. Richardson tells us
that they are developing that concept with Sam Dickerson of Wolfgang Petersen’s
Radiant Productions.

“Ghost” tells the story of a beautiful but dead gun-slinging
avenger who stalks the city of Arcadia trying to unravel the mystery of her
death and take revenge on her killers.

Richardson cautions us that this one is in the early stages. Presently Dark
Horse is looking to attach a writer to the project.

Levin reports that they have a completed script from David Hayter
(“X-Men”), “that absolutely celebrates the book. It’s a great
adaptation of it. It’s very faithful.”

Levin said that they have no intention of trying to dumb-down the material,
but rather “approach whatever you do with as much seriousness as possible
and give it as much dignity as it deserves.”

Hayter is still a contender to direct but there is no timetable for starting
pre-production of “Watchmen.”

COMIC
BOOK: THE MOVIE

Look for a big presence by the mockumentary “Comic Book: The Movie”
at Comic-Con International
this week. Creative Light Entertainment will be set up at booths 3924 and 3825.
Here’s a round up of their events at the con:

Are you within a super powered leap of San Diego? Plan to be at the Con. The
cast of Comic Book the movie will be there signing autographs. Plus: mention the
Codename Code Word: Jefferson Dale and get a free “Have Courage”
T-shirt.

And just look at all the other folks your pals at Creative Light have rustled
up for you to say hi to (and get an autograph from):

Creative Light Entertainment invites you to meet the stars and filmmakers
behind the next generation of indy sci-fi and comics films.

Some of the warriors of Sci-Fi and comic book themed movies join Stan Lee for
an insightful panel about the hottest phenomenon in movies today-the comic book.
Lee, who is one the original creators of the biggest blockbuster films in recent
years (i.e. Spider-Man, Hulk, X-Men) explores why big Hollywood studios are not
the only players in this game with highly independent producers in the comic
book genre. Joining Lee on the panel are Creative Light Entertainment’s Scott
Zakarin (Stan Lee’s Mutants, Monsters & Marvels, Comic Book: The Movie),
Mindfire Entertainment’s Mark Altman (The Specials, House of the Dead), and
actress Chase Masterson (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Creature Unknown). The
panelists will share the secrets of what it takes to make a successful super
hero movie and how to make comic book themed movies economically.

Stan Lee will be signing autographs after the panel from 12:30 to 1:30!

Last year, thousands of fans were blown away by the Mark Hamill Wants You In
His Movie panel that featured the voices behind the Joker, Spongebob Squarepants,
Ren & Stimpy, Winnie the Pooh and several of the hottest cartoons on
television. In addition to being part of the filming of the climatic scene of
Creative Light Entertainment and Amazing Invisible, Inc.’s Comic Book: The
Movie, they were treated to over four hours of the most amazing stories,
impressions, music, and Q & A session by the most famous voice over artists
in animation today.

Join in on the fun as the Voice Over stars of your favorite Cartoons gather
to do a script reading, some improv and Q&A – Mark Hamill, Jess Harnell,
Roger Rose, Billy West, Maurice LaMarche, Bob Bergen, Gregg Burger and many
more!

BLADE III

Fans who must know everything can find another review of the “Blade
III” script online. This time up, FilmJerk
took a gander at David Goyer’s script. The review

is very positive with some minor spoilers.

“Blade III” is set to lens in September. Goyer, who also wrote the
first two and produced the second one, is acting as writer, producer and
director on the final chapter to the comic franchise.

TRANSFORMERS

Look
for Entertainment Rights to distribute “Transformers: Armada” on DVD
this year. Variety
reports that the UK distributor has secured the North American rights to the
animated show.

IRON
MAN

SCI
FI Wire chatted up screenwriter Miles Millar about his work on the
“Iron Man” movie. Millar said he and partner Alfred Gough are about
halfway done with the script, which he deems faithful, but updated…and gold!

The
screenwriting duo was challenged by the notion of updating things beyond a
simple man in an iron suit take. “I think we found a really cool way,
actually, to reinvent the suit, make it very high-tech, make it very cool
visually,” Millar said.

It was the depth of the man under the mask that
attracted the writers. “Tony Stark, I think, … [is] a really interesting
character,” Millar said. “That’s what I think really drew us to the
character in the first place. It’s that he had a depth and an originality that
you hadn’t seen in a superhero before. There’s no character like this currently
in superhero movies.”

THE
PUNISHER

The VisitTampaBay
site has the latest word on casting extra’s for “The Punisher.” Here’s
an excerpt directly from the site:

“If you’ve ever dreamed of being in the movies, here’s your chance.
Producers of The Punisher, the full-length feature film being shot on location
in Tampa, will be conducting an open casting call for extras on Saturday, July
19 at The Florida Aquarium from 12:00 to 4:00 p.m.

“Participants are asked to bring a recent snapshot; a professional
headshot is not required. Approximately 2,000 extras will be needed for several
small scenes throughout the course of the movie. Casting agents are interested
in a wide range of looks, so people of all demographic profiles are encouraged
to participate.”

Earlier this year, the New York City Comic Book Museum (NYCCBM) successfully
raised funds through an eBay auction of an authentic poster from the smash-hit
movie “Daredevil,” featuring autographs from the four key stars, the
director and the executive producer.

Now, the winner of that auction, Adam Kellenberger, is setting up a raffle
for the poster to coincide with this week’s Comic-Con
International: San Diego 2003. Kellenberger, who owns a comic book store
called Hobby Monkey in Rocklin, California and administers a comic book
creator’s forum online called The Comic Boards, will have a booth at the annual
San Diego event this week.

Kellenberger will donate 100 percent of the proceeds of the raffle to NYCCBM.
Raffle tickets are $1 each, and the raffle will begin at the opening of Comic
Con International: San Diego 2003 on Wednesday, July 15 and continue through
Sunday, July 20. The winner of the raffle will be notified on Monday, July 21.

The original movie poster, which was originally donated to NYCCBM by Marvel
Entertainment’s Avi Arad and Kevin Feige, features the image of Ben Affleck as
Daredevil as well as the other three major characters of Elektra, the Kingpin
and Bullseye. The poster is signed by the stars Affleck, Jennifer Garner,
Michael Clarke Duncan and Collin Farrell, as well as director Mark Steven
Johnson and executive producer Avi Arad.

HOLLYWOOD
COMES TO COMIC-CON

From a press release:

Hollywood moves 125 miles south for a few days this summer as Comic-Con
International, the nation’s largest comic book and popular arts convention
will play host to some of Hollywood’s biggest celebrities.

From Academy Award winner Angelina Jolie, to Academy Award winner Halle
Berry. From film director Kevin Smith, to Academy Award nominee Edward James
Olmos, the stars will truly shine in San Diego. And that’s just a very small
sampling.

“We couldn’t be more pleased,” commented David Glanzer,
spokesperson for the non profit event, “to see such an impressive lineup
for our show is just truly staggering.”

Comic-Con International will be held July 17th through the 20th, 2003, and is
known for its wide appeal to lovers of comic books, movies, television, Japanese
animation and all things pop culture.

A San Diego institution, Comic-Con International began many years ago with
only 300 people in its first year. The 2002 show saw the attendance reach an
impressive 63,000 unique attendees.

The years have seen the show grow in both size and scope, from it’s origins
in the basement of a local hotel, to the expansive 450,000 square feet it now
utilizes of the San Diego Convention Center.

In addition to the variety of movie stars, Comic-Con International also plays
host to panels, workshops, programs and discussions on all aspects of the
popular arts including: How to Self Publish your Comic Book; Independent
Filmmaking; and Proper Training in Art to name just a few.

If that weren’t enough, Comic-Con also features an Independent Film Festival
as well as the Lucasfilm Ltd, and Atom Films Star Wars Fan Film Festival.

“Though it sounds somewhat cliché, there really is something for
everyone,” continued Glanzer.

Comic-Con International is a non profit educational organization dedicated to
creating awareness of and appreciation of comics and related popular art forms
primarily through the presentation of conventions and events that celebrate the
historic and ongoing contribution of comics to art and culture.